This study aimed to determine the effects of an herbal formula named TD0014 on the electrostimulationinduced erection in a rat model. Eighteen sixteen-week-old male Wistar rats were used. The intracavernous pressure and the arterial blood pressure were simultaneously monitored during cavernous nerve electrical stimulation before and after the administration of TD0014 (1.8 g/kg).
e during erection After electrostimulating the cavernosal nerve, compared to the control group, TD0014 tended to have an elevation in the maximal ICP (12% increase), total ICP (25% increase), and a prolonged response time to the stimulus, i.e prolong the duration of penile tumescence, however, these results showed no signitificant differences (p > 0.05) Thus, in the current study, TD0014 given once before nerve stimulation markedly increased baseline ICP, slightly increased both the MIP and the response time to the stimulus These results suggested that TD0014 may be beneficial for patients with erectile dysfunction, and can improving the patient's sexual life JMR 111 E2 (2) - 2018 JOURNAL OF MEDICAL RESEARCH TD0014 preparation contains several medicinal plants that have been studied for the effects on sexual functions, including erectile capacity, which can partly explain the impacts of this herbal formula on the enhancement of penile erection Results published by Do J et al (2013) indicated that Tribulus terrestris extract caused relaxation of the cavernous smooth muscle in a concentration-dependent manner, and the mechanism included a reaction involving the NO/NOS pathway in the corpus cavernosum endothelium [8] Echinacoside, a phenylethanoid glycoside isolated from the medicinal herb Cistanche tubulosa, had an effect on nitric oxide (NO)cGMP signaling pathway and resulted in an increased cGMP in corpus cavernosum smooth muscle [9] The neurotransmitter inducing penile erection, NO release was shown to be enhanced by ginsenosides, saponins from Panax ginseng in rabbit’s corpus cavernosum in vitro Ginsenosides enhanced both acetylcholine-induced and transmural nerve stimulation-activated relaxation associated with increased tissue cGMP [10] Some other medicinal plants in TD0014 were proved to cause an increase in serum testosterone level [11 - 15], therefore ameliorated ED by reducing ROS production and increasing the activity of the eNOS/cGMP [20] The MIP/MAP indicates the extent of relaxation of corpus cavernosum and deep arteries in the penis, while MAP represents the capacity of pumping blood into the penis Generally, drugs with an effect of increasing MAP will decrease the MIP/MAP JMR 111 E2 (2) - 2018 because of an associated contraction of corpus cavernosum and deep arteries in the penis On the contrary, drugs with an effect of decreasing MAP will increase the MIP/MAP The optimal charge in MIP should be determined by a balanced change in the MIP/MAP and MAP The present study in rats showed that sildenafil administration slightly decreased MAP by approximately 10 mmHg, and subsequently increased MIP/MAP (Table 2) Therefore, in clinical practice, sildenafil should be prescribed with caution in patients with cardiovascular risk factors [19] This current study results show that TD0014 could increase ICP without significantly impacting on MAP The data suggests that TD0014 could selectively enhance erectile function without effecting systemic blood pressure Therefore it could limit the side effects on blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases, which are common undesirable effects of drugs currently used to treat ED V CONCLUSION On the basis of our results, we conclude that the herbal formulation TD0014 may have a positive and selective effect on improving the erectile functions in male rats without impacting systemic blood pressure Treatment with TD0014 may significantly increase the baseline ICP, improve maximal ICP and the duration of penile tumescence Acknowledgements This work was supported by the Department of Physiology, Military Medical University 41 JOURNAL OF MEDICAL RESEARCH REFERENCES Panel NC (1992) Impotence NIH Consens Statement, vol 10, – 33 Andrology Australia (2014) Erectile dysfunction – Impotence and Related Health Issues 4th edition Dong J, Zhang Y, and Qin L (2011) Erectile dysfunction and risk of cardiovascular disease: meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies Journal of the American College of Cardiology, vol 58, no 13, 1378 – 1385 Avasthi A, Grover S, Bhansali A et al (2011) Erectile dysfunction in diabetes mellitus contributes to poor quality of life International Review of Psychiatry, vol 23, no 1, 93 – 99 Hatzimouratidis K, Eardley I, Giuliano F, Moncada I, Salonia A (2015) Guidelines on Male Sexual Dysfunction: Erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation European Association of Urology Huang SA and Lie JD (2013) Phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) Inhibitors In the Management of Erectile Dysfunction Pharmacy and Therapeutics, 38(7):407, 414 - 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